Coronavirus poll: 2 things most Americans believe should change before return to ‘normal’

Despite the countless ways life has changed over the past few months, many people seem to agree there can be no returning to “normal” until a few things affecting parents change.

Regardless of whether they have kids at home, more than 3 in 5 Americans — 61% — believe there can be no return to “normal” until school and child care services resume.

That finding is from a national poll of more than 1,000 people conducted by Heart+Mind Strategies for WTOP on May 6 and 7.

Another question in the poll covered a policy known as universal basic income (UBI), which some politicians supported before the coronavirus pandemic.


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Respondents were asked if they would support a monthly payment of $1,000 to all Americans regardless of their income level. Those supporting UBI were …

  • 49% of Republicans.
  • 56% of Americans.
  • 62% of millennials.
  • 65% of those laid off.
  • 67% of Generation X.
  • 68% of Democrats.

As for reopening the economy, the poll finds no change compared with the previous week: 55% of respondents want to keep current stay-at-home orders and other restrictions, while 45% believe it’s time to start relaxing restrictions.

How are people feeling overall? The poll finds an uptick in negative emotions compared with the previous week, with fluctuations of 3 to 4 percentage points.

  • 28% report feeling scared, an increase of 4 percentage points.
  • 49% feel worried, an increase of 3 percentage points.
  • 29% feel hopeful, a decline of 4 percentage points.

The poll was an online quantitative survey. The surveyors said that if they were to estimate a margin of error, it would be +/- 3.1%, at 95% confidence.


More WTOP coronavirus poll stories:


Kristi King

Kristi King is a veteran reporter who has been working in the WTOP newsroom since 1990. She covers everything from breaking news to consumer concerns and the latest medical developments.

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